Idris Elba In Talks to Replace Will Smith in ‘Suicide Squad 2’

With the news that Will Smith will not return for James Gunn’sSuicide Squad reboot/sequel/whatever, the team is short one Deadshot. But now the The Hollywood Reportersays Gunn may have found a more than suitable replacement: Idris Elba.

Per THR:

Sources say that Elba met with Gunn on Friday and it went so swimmingly that talks began with the studio in earnest. Elba was the first and only choice for Gunn and the studio. Warners is extremely high on The Suicide Squadand its script, written by Gunn, so much so that the project is barrelling forward into the casting stage after Gunn quickly turned out several drafts. Before his boarding, the project ambled for a couple of years with a revolving door of writers and directors.

Elba has already got plenty of tentpole action experience in movies like The Dark Tower, Pacific Rim. He’s more than qualified to replace Smith (or pretty much any cool anti-hero character with very good aim). And I could see him working very well with Margot Robbie’s Harley Quinn — provided she’s in the movie at all, which is not guaranteed at this point. Gunn’s Suicide Squad is scheduled to open in theaters on August 6, 2021.